Cuisinart Prestige 19-Piece Knife Set

I tried Kyocera ceramic knives and found them very sharp but the edge was much too fragile and dulled if abused by cutting on a hard surface. Resharpening required shipping back to Kyocera for a nominal fee for resharpening. I bought a single Cuisinart knife at a local retailer and found it almost as sharp as the ceramic knife but much more robust. It is easily resharpened with a butcher steel back to a very fine edge. I then purchased the 19 piece set and could not be happier. One caution though - the 410 alloy used in fine steel knives cannot be washed in a dishwasher or the surface will be discolored (removed easily with Brillo). The Stainless Steel alloy that does not discolor unfortunately does not keep a sharp edge.

This was given to my son and daughter in law for a wedding present. They were most pleased with it. They already had a lot of kitchen items, so this is what they requested.

I bought these for Christmas last year. We have not had any problems with rust spots or even water spots and we have well water. The black handled items match the block so it is not an eyesore to us. The knives are extremely sharp and hold the edge well. I sharpened them as soon as we bought them and haven't had to sharpen since.
They are a bit on the expensive side but I believe you get what you pay for .

I've had these for about 2 months now.

They work great, have a comfortable handle. Handle is all stainless steel but it's brushed stainless so your hand gets good traction. And since it's all metal exterior you shouldn't have to worry as much about the handle falling apart (as happened to my last knife set, which admittedly lasted for 4 years or so).

PROS

* All stainless steel handle means longer life for the handle.
* Brushed stainless steel on handle is easy to grip.
* I love the Santuko knife (which is the knife (in the picture) that's not in the holder). This, with the Chef's knife, gives you two knives for cutting. I often cut meat and then cut vegetables (for stir fry, etc.) so it's nice to have two such knives.
* I was worried about the lack of standard size bread knife but the included small one works for nearly all the bread cutting I need to do. (We saved our standard size bread knife from our old set just in case but I've not had to pull it out of the drawer yet.
* The block is solid graphite (or similar material) rather than a laminate so as the knives inevitable scratch the surface there isn't a laminate to "scratch through" so the scratches don't show up as well. I've seen far more expensive knives that don't have this sort of block. It's great.

CONS
* Cheaper at Bed Bath And Beyond (I paid $99 there vs. $149 listed price @ Amazon). Sorry Amazon.com ;-)

I read on here where someone was having rust problems. It is not the knives. We had this happen to a few sets of silverware made of the same type/finish metal. The problem is using dishwashing detergent with lemon.
I know it sounds crazy but as soon as we stopped using the detergents with lemon the rust/tarnish stopped appearing.

I just got the knives and my only complaint is they are way too light.
Especially the steak knives.

We bought these because we liked the idea of all stainless steel metal knives that go straight into the dishwasher after use. These knifes have rust spots all over the blades every time we wash them. Is the handle the only Stainless Steel piece? I suspect the cheapest quality of SS. We're very disappointed.

What others are saying about the knife holder (black base) is true too. Ours looked banged up right out of the box.

I replaced my really old, worn knives with this set. I got them on sale and they slice and dice well.

My husband and I bouht a set much like this (I think ours is smaller) from our local Bed Bath and Beyond. (paid more for it) in any case, we have used them for about 6 months (minimal to average use) and they already seem to be dull. they look great and the removable steak knife feature is GREAT but if you are looking for knives that last and stay sharp these are not it. We have only hand washed these knives they have never been in the dishwasher and are still dull.

I like the knives but the block is way too wide. Worth the prices but it is a little irritating to give up so much counter space. I may end up having to buy either a third party block or a magnet bar.

This set is decent, though a few things could have been different to lower the price and make it more appealing.

First off, eight steak knives is flat out overkill. Six would have been better.

Also, the scissors and sharpening tool have tacky black plastic handles, which are quite the eyesore to the type of person who buys all stainless knives. Dump those two items, shave off two steak knives, and drop the price by about thirty dollars and this set would do much better.

The santoku knives are great, I've been a fan of those for years. Yet again, however, there is excess with two 3 1/2 inch parers... a regular one and a santoku version.

Okay, enough whining. These are still good knives. They are very stylish, especially with the black block as opposed to the typical wood, and the block separates for buffet situations. The handles are comfortable and have a natural grip. I also like the lightweight feel, since I prefer that my kitchen cutlery not weigh as much as a knight's sword. If you use proper technique and pressure, you'll have no problem wielding these on unsuspecting vegetables.

Overall, I say four stars, mainly due to styling. They are not Wusthof knives, but they are certainly not as expensive either. If they ever sell a streamlined version of this set, get it. If not, and you can handle the extra bulk, then this set will do.

I bought these for $80 on sale, and sent them back the next day. Apart from everything else the block was scratched in 3 places.

These knives weigh nothing and would be unpleasant to use if you want any heft at all.

Perhaps if these were presented as $80 knives I'd have had a different opinion, but I thought I was getting better knives at a great Lightning Deal price.

Once again, Cuisinart is trading on it's reputation for quality food processors.